Which to use
“Enthaltung” and “Erhaltung” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #37,491
- “Enthaltung” frequency rank
- #7,039
- “Erhaltung” frequency rank
- 44530
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | Enthaltung | Erhaltung |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | „das meistens freiwillige Sichenthalten von Genüssen, Essen oder Trinken“ | Sicherung des weiteren Fortbestehens |
Where the eye mixes Enthaltung and Erhaltung
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 8 letters in sequence. Enthaltung runs 10 letters (VCCCVCCVCC) against Erhaltung's 9 (VCCVCCVCC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Visual trap between Enthaltung and Erhaltung
A purely visual mix-up. Enthaltung ([ɛntˈhaltʊŋ]) and Erhaltung ([ɛɐ̯ˈhaltʊŋ]) are said differently, so reading them aloud is the quickest way to catch the wrong one. On the page they stay close: they differ by 1 letter(s) in length. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 44530, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
Enthaltung is recorded at frequency rank #37,491, classified as anoun, pronounced [ɛntˈhaltʊŋ]. Erhaltung is at rank #7,039, tagged as anoun, pronounced [ɛɐ̯ˈhaltʊŋ].
Glosses for this pair are partially populated in our dataset, but the full side-by-side definitions above should still guide you to the right choice.
With a confusion score of 44530, this pair ranks #1,383,220 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of Enthaltung vs Erhaltung
Shared letters: aeghlntu. Private to "Enthaltung": -. Private to "Erhaltung": r.
"Enthaltung" · 10 letters · shape VCCCVCCVCC · "Erhaltung" · 9 letters · shape VCCVCCVCC
Known mistypes of this pair
- Enthaltung ← enhtaltung · ennthaltung · entahltung · enthalltung · enthaltnug · enthalttung · enthaltugn · enthaltungg
- Erhaltung ← ehraltung · erahltung · erhalltung · erhaltnug · erhalttung · erhaltugn · erhaltungg · erhaltunng
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "Enthaltung" and "Erhaltung" be used interchangeably?
In ordinary German text, does "Enthaltung" or "Erhaltung" show up more?
After this comparison
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "Enthaltung" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "Erhaltung" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,383,220 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "Enthaltung" and "Erhaltung" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "Enthaltung vs Enthaltungen". Nearby pair
- Recorded mistypes exist for at least one side of this pair, useful when a spell-checker or OCR lands on the wrong form. See mistypes
Confusion rank #1,383,220 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.